From Duke Nukem To China's War On Gaming - News Roundup 29th December

In spite of the festive season, there've been a few juicy tidbits to come out of the gaming sector in the last day or two. Today's news roundup sees 3D Realms drop a few hints that there are several Duke Nukem projects in the works, Square Enix suggest that there a couple of top secret projects in the works and file a new patent with Tetsuya Nomura listed as the inventor, and a recent Chinese 'expose' reveals how gaming can lead to murder, drug addiction and group sex.

3D Realms Hint That The Duke Might Return In 2010

How many times have we heard this old chestnut in the last few years? Will Duke Nukem Forever ever see the light of day? Well, CEO Scott Miller isn't ruling anything out, and he was even on hand the other to talk a little bit to Gamesauce magazine about the Duke's other projects in development:

"The next few years should see a strong resurgence in Duke," Miller says. "There are numerous other Duke games in various stages of development, several due out this year. We are definitely looking to bring Duke into casual gaming spaces, plus there are other major Duke games in production. Almost all of these [projects] are unannounced."

Is he telling the truth? Do you think we'll be seeing the flat-topped sex-pest shooter any time soon and will you care when he does? Drop us a comment below with your thoughts. [1up]

Tetsuya Nomura Stirs Up Some Hype And Files New Patent

Miller and 3D Realms aren't the only ones trying to whip up some interest before 2010 arrives, Square Enix and Tetsuya Nomura are giving it a go too. Speaking to Famitsu, Nomura suggested that there were several things in the pipeline for 2010, but that what he was most looking forward to was an as-yet unannounced game for which he'd received several personal requests. So, a trademark bit of pre-hype there from the Advent Children director.

On top of that, a patent was recently filed by Square listing Nomura as the inventor for a character switching battle system. The patent describes an RPG where the player can jump into the shoes of a temporary character for a limited time to learn and inherit their attributes and abilities. The patent also depicts a handheld device that looks suspiciously like the PSP. So a new RPG for Sony's mobile baby might well be on the cards for 2010. [Siliconera]

China Central TV Reckons Games Cause Murder

Apparently society's ills are pretty much down to gaming, China Central Television would have us believe. A recent programme entitled 'Confession of a Murderer - Focus on Pornography and Violence in Online Games (Part 2)' reported on a man currently serving life in a juvenile prison for murdering five people over virtual loot. According to the programme, nearly 80% of the violent inmate population are there because of video games.

The latest instalment of the series on CCTV also reported on a 14 year old girl who, after playing the game Audition, was supposedly influenced into having sex with people that she met online. The game purportedly encouraged one-night stands, and the girl ended up having to go through two abortions.

Kids across the country are apparently also doing speed and crystal meth to keep them awake during gaming marathons if the channel is to be believed. Sorry Felicia Day, it looks like The Guild would be more realistic if it played out slightly more like Spun. [Joystiq]

What do you guys think about all of this? Will gaming lead to Requiem for a Dream or is this just the state trying to flex their muscles? Pop your thoughts in the box below.

Well they kind of have a point. Before video games were invented there was NO violent crime at all. Now look at us. In the UK the first violent murder took place in 1993 when Doom was released. Apparently Jack the Ripper, Mirah Hindley and Fred West all had access to early prototype video games, hence their sorry ends. If we ban video games it would also stop dictatorships around the world and also genocide of course. Its these bleedin heart liberals that are keeping crime alive by allowing these games to be sold!

Ha ha! Yeah I agree. I mean society was so much less brutal during the Middle Ages before video games were invented. What went on during the Hundred years war and the crusades just doesn't compare to the violence you hear about these days. It makes me laugh that China blame video games for encouraging violence when their government are so barbaric they still execute people. It’s classic Joseph Goebbels propaganda. They show a few extreme cases and try to make people think it represents some kind of universal trend.